Fulvio Giulio della Corgna

Fulvio Giulio della Corgna (also Della Cornia, Della Corgnia) (19 November, 1517 – 2 March, 1583) was a Tuscan Catholic bishop and cardinal.

Fulvio Giulio della Corgna was born in Perugia on November 19, 1517, the son of Francia della Corgna, a Perugian nobleman who bore the title of Duca di Corgna, and Jacopa Ciocchi del Monte. He had a brother Ascanio, who became an important commander of papal armies and Duca della Corgna. His mother was the sister of Pope Julius III and niece of Cardinal Antonio Maria Ciocchi del Monte. The family owned the Marchesato di Castiglione del Lago on Lake Bolsena. Fulvio was a Marchese della Corgna.

He joined the Knights Hospitaller at an early age, taking the religious name "Giulio" in honor of his family's benefactor, Pope Julius II. He entered the court of his uncle, Cardinal Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte, the future Pope Julius III. He was named a Protonotary Apostolic, as well as Archpriest of the Cathedral of S. Lorenzo of Perugia.

On March 5, 1550, he was appointed Bishop of Perugia by his Uncle Julius. He became Papal Legate of Ascolo-Piceno, Reate and Monteleone di Spoleto on December 15, 1550. It was Fulvio della Corgna who was responsible for the founding of the seminary in Perugia and for inviting the Jesuits to the city to establish a college, the first Rector of which was Everard de Mercœur (Mercurian).

Pope Julius III made him a cardinal priest in the consistory of November 20, 1551. He received the red hat and the titular church of Santa Maria in Via Lata on December 4, 1551.

In 1553, Cosimo de' Medici, Duke of Florence, fearing that the fighting in Tuscany might expand into a larger war between the Empire (Charles V) and France (Henri II), which would be severely damaging to his territories, urgently requested the Pope to send negotiators to work out an understanding. Julius sent Cardinal Fulvio della Corgna to Florence and Cardinal Niccolò Caetani de Sermoneta to Siena. When nothing came of their efforts, Pope Julius III himself travelled to Viterbo. On August 2, the French, who had invaded Tuscany under Marshal Blaise de Montluc, were defeated at the Battle of Marciano, and forced to retreat into Siena, where they fomented a coup-d-état in their own interests. But the fact that Vercelli had recently fallen to Marshal de Brissac and the Duke of Savoy had been killed (August 16) gave the French, enjoying one success after another, the courage to decline to settle. The Tuscan War was just beginning. Duke Cosimo of Florence requested that Cardinal della Corgna be named administrator of Spoleto to quell disturbances that had broken out there; on March 22, 1553, therefore, the Cardinal resigned the government of Perugia to become Administrator of Spoleto, on the appointment of Pope Julius III. His seat in Perugia was taken by his nephew, Ippolito della Corgna.

...
Wikipedia